Press Releases

Los Angeles, 13 January 2016 - The MEF is pleased to announce that it will be hosting the MEF16 global networking event during 7-10 November 2016 at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor Hotel. Building on the success of the GEN14 & GEN15, we are changing the name from GEN16 to MEF16 (www.mef16.com) to better reflect the MEF's leadership role in driving industry transformation.

MEF16 Focus

MEF16 is focused on enabling dynamic network services for the hyper-connected world. Optimized for the digital economy, emerging “Third Network” services provide an on-demand, cloud-centric experience with user-directed control over network resources and assured connectivity orchestrated between both physical and virtual service endpoints. Dynamic services are delivered over more automated, interconnected networks powered by CE 2.0 (Carrier Ethernet 2.0), LSO (Lifecycle Service Orchestration), SDN & NFV.

“GEN15 emphasized CE 2.0 as the foundation for service innovation, highlighted LSO as a critical enabler of automated and virtualized networks built with SDN & NFV, and encouraged closer work among industry standards & open source organizations,” said MEF President Nan Chen. “MEF16 will build upon these themes by gathering all of the key industry stakeholders to explore and accelerate development of dynamic network services within a highly collaborative open source environment. We look forward to working closely with event sponsors & partner organizations to create another world-class conference in the coming months.”

Assembling Dynamic Networking Ecosystem

With a target audience of 1,200+ attendees, MEF16 is the must-attend annual networking event for executives and other senior professionals involved in the dynamic network services & technology ecosystem. MEF16 is bringing together a global array of 120+ CE, LSO, SDN, NFV, and Cloud expert speakers from around the world to contribute to the event’s program and networking opportunities. Event content and peer-to-peer networking opportunities are designed to appeal to experts from retail, wholesale, and mobile service providers; cloud service providers; mid-to-large businesses; government & defense organizations; technology solutions suppliers; industry standards & open source organizations; investors; analyst firms; the press; and others.

Key Benefits Of Attending

MEF16 will uniquely empower industry stakeholders with high-quality information & analysis, extraordinary peer-to-peer networking opportunities, and valuable insight into cutting-edge services & technologies. This year's event will expand popular elements of last year’s program, including the Proof of Concept Service & Technology Showcase, MEF Excellence Awards Dinner, LSO Hackathon; MEF Services Interconnect Zone, MEF Certified Professionals Convention, Global Media Hub, Standards & Open Source Projects program content, sponsor workshops, and more. We also will be shaping Wholesale-related program elements to broaden direct participation of Tier 2 and smaller operators. More information will be available on the MEF16 website (mef16.com) in the coming weeks.

Super Early Bird Sponsorship Deadline - 31 January

Sign up now to take advantage of the Super Early Bird Savings of 20% on Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum sponsor packages & 15% on additional sponsorship options. For sponsorship information, please contact Trisha Layante at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

About the MEF

The MEF is the driving force behind the ~$80 billion global market for Carrier Ethernet services and technologies and the defining body for LSO (Lifecycle Service Orchestration) standards that underpin emerging Third Network services with CE 2.0, SDN, and NFV. An industry alliance consisting of nearly 220 member organizations based in 43 countries, the MEF operates through a powerful collaborative framework of service providers, network solutions suppliers, and other stakeholders to achieve CE 2.0 and LSO development and globalization objectives.

MEF’s flagship work is CE 2.0, including specifications, operational frameworks, and certification programs for services, equipment, and professionals. Visit www.mef.net for more details on these programs.

Building on fourteen years of success with Carrier Ethernet, the MEF is now focused on development of LSO with APIs to enable paradigm-shifting agile, assured, and orchestrated services over more efficient, automated networks. The MEF’s vision for the transformation of network connectivity services and the networks used to deliver them is referred to as the “Third Network,” which combines the on-demand agility and ubiquity of the Internet with the performance and security assurances of CE 2.0. For information on the Third Network and LSO download the MEF’s Third Network Vision & Strategy White Paper and Third Network Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) Vision White Paper.